


Thanks I'm Hating It

by Lupo (LupoLight)



Series: Androids and Idiots [1]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Gavin gets shot, Gavin is not a complete dick in this one, Gavin's poor life choices, Good Ending/Peaceful Ending, M/M, Multi, No betas we die like heroes, Post-Canon, THEY. TALK. ABOUT. FEELINGS., chapter 4 is fluffnfuck, completely skippable, connor giving 900 the 'talk', connor is going to be so mad, i cant tag for shit btw, outfit swap, rated mature for now because gavin has no shame, rating will definitely go up, rk900 has thirst but doesnt realize it, rk900 is still learning human mannerisms, this was supposed to be a oneshot you guys, when does that not happen lets be real
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-08
Updated: 2019-07-15
Packaged: 2020-06-24 14:36:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19725646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LupoLight/pseuds/Lupo
Summary: Gavin goes to a fast food burger joint and Nines judges him. Then he realizes that Gavin isn't as much of a dick as he used to be, except he is, but in a different way. He isn't sure how to react to this knowledge.





	1. Burgers and Fizzy Drinks

**Author's Note:**

  * For [the Jericho discord server](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=the+Jericho+discord+server).



> No betas we die like heroes here. I honestly just wanted to write something small about Gavin going to a fast food burger joint and Nines judging him, but it kinda went away from me when I realized how much I love writing this. So yeah, expect more. I don't know how much more, but there will be more. @ the Jericho discord, thanks for encouraging me, now it's snowballing out of control.
> 
> Also Gavin is not just a walking dick in both the literal and metaphorical sense thank you.

“Really Detective Reed?” If someone were to inform RK900 that at approximately 2:04 in the morning he was going to be standing in the washed out colors of some fast food chain, he would’ve dismissed them as possibly being on drugs. If someone told him he was going there to eat no less, he would've outright scanned them as he was concerned for their mental state. But here he was, after a long stakeout that only ended around an hour ago, following his partner into the building. "Yeah, so? I need to eat, it's cheap, and it's open. I'm sure we can find something on the menu for you, if not we can stop at one of the CyberLife vendors down the road too." Rk900 scanned the room they were in, waiting for someone to approach the counter. Despite it's lack of now illegal 'no androids' sign, he had a feeling he's the only android that's been here in a while. The place needed cleaned, and various signs of suspicious substance glittered in his vision. "Out of all due respect, I wouldn't eat here if I was human. Are you sure this is the only place suitable for your needs?"  
  
He was being ignored, Gavin talking to some young guy. Smaller in build, black hair, nearly black eyes- human. Not surprising to find out, since any android, deviant or not, would still want to clean this place up at least a little. This guy looked like he absolutely hated his existence. Or had other places to be. "Welcome to McRoy Burgers. Don't be coy, eat at McR-" Gavin cut the smaller human off, amused by the fact they seemed relieved by his partner's rush. "Yeah yeah, I'll just take a number ten, small." The guy punched in the numbers, and Gavin paid. "It'll be out shortly." And Gavin was already walking towards him. Upon closer inspection of the detective, he seemed ragged. This was the only case they'd been paired together since the dog disaster case an entire month, and it looked like Reed hadn't been sleeping again. "You really have the worst taste buds I've seen for a human. Lieutenant Anderson may have ate nothing but burgers before Connor and him became close, but from what I know, they at least came from a commendable food truck."  
  
He got flipped off for that, Gavin sitting in one of the tables by the window while he waited. "Okay first off, don't compare me to that old sack of skin, I get enough of that at work. Second off, I work it off anyways, I can eat whatever the hell I want! At least I make an attempt to stay fit, if Hank didn't have Connor babysitting him, he'd outweigh his damn couch." RK monitored as Gavin seemed annoyed by all this, but the information he newly received caught his curiosity. They did walk here, and with no car, did that mean... "You work it off?" Gavin blinked, as if he was processing the question. Nines figured he was, it always took the detective more time than necessary to figure out how to respond to him. But then he smirked, and Nines didn't bother to smother the urge to frown. "Yeah, I work it off. We'll be walking home, or I'll, still don't know where _you_ go if I'm honest, and then once I'm home I'll do some crunches," Gavin paused, and then pushed the chair back, tipping it somewhat. _'Risk of tipping over: 47%'_ He was about to warn the other to return the chair to it's proper position when he did something Nines come to know as _inappropriate_ for public settings. He felt himself up- or rather his thighs and legs, in a way that _had_ to be sexual right? Nines quickly scanned the room for anyone to see, but no one was paying attention. "Earth to Nines, or did you knock something loose!" Gavin called, and Rk900 jolted his attention back to the detective. Was he speaking that whole time? "Yes?"  
  
"Weird fucking metal- I don't like repeating myself!"  
  
"You do so frequently," and he was about to repeat the many phrases Gavin shot off at him on an almost daily phrases before Gavin swatted at his face, letting himself fall forward with the chair. "Fuck off. As I was saying, I'll probably do some crunches then hit one of my leg weights. I've gone a bit soft about here," and he- he swatted his own thighs. RK900 was sure this wasn't appropriate, and stood a bit more protectively around Gavin. "And it's annoying. I'm not a muscly guy sure, but I think I'm in pretty good shape!" And he flexed, Nines facepalming at the motion. "You are in good shape, but this food is still disgusting." Gavin grumbled, before shrugging as his order came up. "Eh, when you start buying I'll listen Nines. For now, I'm going to eat this chicken patty. And we're going to walk to the vendor and get you something too- don't say you don't need it, I know you don't, but if I'm stuck with only you to celebrate then cele-fucking-brate we will." He grabbed his bag, ignoring the poor guy who seemed confused about this entire conversation. With no opportunity to object, RK900 followed Reed out the door. It was muggy warm, and he couldn't help but scan the weather. * _57% Humidity, 30% chance of rain._ *  
  
They walked down to the vendor, beside the android charging station. These were installed shortly after the revolution, Cyberlife realizing the best thing they could do to save face was change direction. The vendors were more like vending machines than anything else, providing a variety of thirium and harmless water based products meant for androids to essentially drink. Really, if Nines had to compare it to something, it was a giant Coca-Cola machine. Useless in that it only had one brand of drink for a huge machine, and that androids didn't actually need any of these. But Gavin, a fry in his mouth, was already nudging him with his elbow. "Well, you gonna stare at it or you gonna grab something? Or want me to pick?" That last part might as well been a vague threat, so Nines quickly took the cash, depositing it into the machine. He decided to go with the 'pomegranate' option. Some androids did have the ability to actually taste, so yes, everything was flavored, but he did not. He mostly went for it because it was a 'sanitizer' drink, meant to clean his tongue of any unwanted foreign substance. Which would be a nice reward for his scanners. The drink rolled out, and Gavin let out an appreciative hum. "Didn't take you for a pomegranate guy."  
  
"It'll clean my tongue off." True to nature, Reed scoffed, muttering 'how robotic' before he looked inquisitively to RK. RK, whom wasted no time in popping open the cap and taking a drink. Looking to Reed, he noticed how the detective mentally halted, and wondered what caused the reaction. Whatever it was, it was enough to get the detective to look away when he finished. "Is there something else you wanted to say, Detective?" Nines couldn't stop the snicker as Gavin shoved at least eight fries into his mouth at once, shaking his head and holding up a finger, as if he was eating _before_ Nines asked that question. He let the man have a minute to gather himself nonetheless. "Yeah there is!" Nines mentally chided him for shouting basically. "You spilled some ya' mechanical dumbass." Nines blinked, LED spinning a quick flash of yellow at that. Raising his hand, he wiped his mouth with the back of it, shocked somewhat to actually find the drink on it. "Huh, it appears I have. Thank you Detective." And then he licked it off, seeing no reason to waste it. Besides, for all it was worth, it felt nice to drink. And the noise he got from flustering the detective beside him was great too. "Should we start walking? To answer your earlier inquiry, I mostly stay at the office overnight, or with Hank and Connor." Gavin didn't reply, and Nines didn't figure he needed to, so they just started walking. A part of him wanted to walk faster, just to get a reaction from Reed, but it seemed the detective was thinking about something. There was a small crease in his eyebrows, and he seemed to eat a little faster.  
  
They stopped once, to throw away the trash in a recycling bin. Nines still had half the bottle of soda left, and was about to take another drink before the detective reached up rather quickly to grab it. "Detective, do _not_ throw that away, I am not-" Nines LED stuck on yellow, and he watched Reed take a sip of the drink. That, that couldn't be healthy. He just drank hand sanitizer and thirium in one go, just with flavor. He wasn't even sure the pomegranate was actual juice. When his processors got over the stun that only sheer stupidity of that nature could cause, he grabbed the drink back. "Detective Reed, that was highly dangerous of you! This is not meant for human consumption, and you could get very-" Oh he was going to throttle Gavin for cutting him off, reading the ' _Stress: 34%_ ' ping off in the right side of his vision.  
  
"It doesn't taste that bad. Kind of like vodka and pomegranate spritzer. And it was only a sip Nines, geez. I know what it's made of, it'll be fine." Gavin brushed him off, continuing to walk forward. RK900 remained rooted to the spot for a mere second before catching up, ignoring the other's eye roll as he predicted what was coming next. "Regardless of knowing that this contains thirium, which is known to destabilize human hormone production, you still drank it! You should not be so careless, Reed, on or off the job- _quit doing that!_ " He actually snapped, feeling the ever odd feeling of anger bubbling in him as Gavin bent and closed his fingers to his thumb repeatedly, making the childish 'blah blah blah' motion. The man then had the audacity to smirk up at him, walking a step towards him and placing his hands on his side. He could see the brief, ever present frustration at being smaller than Nines for a moment, before the other spoke. "Make me." And then he stuck his tongue out, noticeably a shade of purple from the drink, and kept walking.   
  
RK900 spent a moment there, LED rolling slowly yellow, as he tried to process what the hell got into Gavin. He was drawing blanks, since the other did have a point and such a small amount shouldn't do much if anything to the human body. This had become more frequent as of late anyways, at least for him. Gavin, like many others, were getting at least used to androids being their own beings. While he never fully expected Gavin's seemingly deep-rooted dislike for androids to go away, it was getting better, easier to manage. "You coming, or did you actually break with that command?" He realized Gavin was several ways away, having at least walked for two minutes before he realized Nines wasn't following him. His hands were back in his pockets, and while his face radiated the lack of sleep in every tired yawn, he seemed eager to get home. "Er, right." He quickly caught up, only to hear Gavin sigh. "You know, you've been awfully phucking goofy today, you sure you didn't knock something loose?"  
  
Nines, purely for making a statement, faked a gasp, glaring at the other. " _I've_ been acting 'goofy'?! Detective, you've been acting outright strange this entire evening! You've felt yourself up in public, you've drank _my_ drink, you've been staring oddly at me since we've hit that restaurant, and then you invade my parameters that indicate 'personal space' and stick your tongue out me! I'll let you know that I do recognize that as, albeit in such a childish way that is beneath you, a sign that's your equivalent of 'fuck you'." He crossed his arms, drink slightly tilted in his hands. Even as Gavin spoke, he focused on the way his tongue was dyed purple. And then he realized he wasn't speaking, he was _laughing_. "I do not find any of your childish antics tonight funny!"  
  
"O-Oh phuck you overgrown laptop!" He snickered at that phrase. "I've been _messing_ with you. I figured you'd like the change of pace, especially since I'm too fucking tired to think of any _good_ insults right now anyways, and seeing you get confused to all hell and back is well worth the change. And- I wasn't feeling myself up! This-" To demonstrate his completely unnecessary point that did _not_ stir heat within the android, the detective ran his hand up under his shirt, bunching the fabric at his wrist and pulling it up just enough that if Nines let his eyes wander- _ABSOLUTELY NOT WANDER_. "This is feeling myself up in public! If you'd actually been paying attention, which obviously for a state of the art detective android you haven't been, I was pressing to see how much fluff I got down there." He let his hand drop, instead linking both of them behind his head and laughing. "Oh this is rich, Hank is going to be rolling when I tell him how much of an airhead you've been. Don't worry, you'll get the royal king of bitching himself back tomorrow, I've learned my lesson. Nines doesn't know how to _relax_." He was still snickering, even as they got to his apartments.  
  
Duly, Nines registered he lived quite a ways away from the precinct, exactly a 17 minute driving given traffic levels were at their average and he was taking the fastest route possible. They walked for 14 minutes, and Nines wondered how the other wasn't passed out. He was struggling with the door, and Nines, still feeling sheepish for not realizing the other was treating him like just another detective, walked up, nudging him aside. "Hey- I got i-" He huffed as Nines got the door open, swinging the door open. "Your door is shit." Gavin blinked, then laughed again, nodding and brushing past him. "Yeah it is, too many dumbass drunk neighbors keep carding the main door open." He stopped, as RK900 didn't follow him. "You seriously walking back tin can?" Nines looked up, eyes narrowing as he tried to pick that apart. Gavin shifted, and Nines wondered if his gaze caused the reaction. "Well, yes. Connor is a further walk, and I don't have another place to reside." He said simply, and noticed Gavin's stress seemed to rise. "Yeaaaah, but it's not safe. Those anti-android groups tend to hang around here..." Gavin sighs, before turning around, facing the steps. "Come on, I ain't catching shit if you got the thirium beat out of you. My apartment's third floor, so you better get behind me if you're coming." Again, he heard Gavin snicker, and this time he pieced it together. LED blinking yellow, he smiled a bit. "I thought you'd rather me be in front of you for that."  
  
On two sides of a coin, part of that was worth it. The other part Nines felt bad for. Gavin's reaction was _priceless_ either way. He actually tripped going up the stairs, and it was Nines' fast reaction that saved him from eating the dirty wooden steps. But the same reaction happened a bit too forcefully, and instead Gavin found himself trapped against the android. The android that didn't realize he was technically holding the other, hand on his wrist that was pressed against his chest, and the other steadied on the wall. He felt Reed heat up, and could only assume why. "Are you alright, Detective?" Oh it was amusing to wait for him to just process everything. Eventually he did and quickly pushed away, scrambling to get up a few steps, cursing up a storm. "Fuck you you fucking metallic lampost looking motherfucker! Twilight dipshit, surprised you don't sparkle in the sunlight!" He just kept going, walking up the steps and Nines followed behind, amused. They finally got to the door, and Gavin was still going, more and more vague references. "And another thing! Where do you get off being so damn tall! Is it supposed to be intimidating?! What's so damn intimidating when you knock your dumbass head off a car doorway or an attic beam cause you're iron giant ass can't duck low enough."  
  
"Are you done yet?" Gavin puffed up, looking like a cat. Which, as the door opened, Nines spotted evidence of one being in the apartment. Huh, he never knew Gavin had a cat. "Of course I'm not fucking done! Hardly! You look like you steam wash your damn hair and put 'extra shine' hair gel, so damn extra." Well, at least he was learning new phrases, cataloging 'extra' into various new terms. Gavin still waited til he walked in, locking the door behind him. Immediately, Nines was surprised. Everything he learned about Gavin- well ok most of it- was contradicted by this place. It was incredibly well cleaned, the colors of the apartment picked to try and make the place look better than it was worth. Deep earth tones with grays to compliment. And quite curiously, splashes of blue that reminded Nines of his own LED. Then he noticed more. There was a bookshelf, with a couple of books toward the bottom, but noticeably, pictures and Chloe figurines. And then some kind of crude hamster android. Gavin, for the most part, quieted down after the door locked, just grumbling repeated phrases. "Reed, is this yours?" He asked, man in question popping his head around the corner after hanging his coat up and taking his shoes off.   
  
"Oh, that was the first gift my brother got me. My pet hamster ran off, so he made me one that wouldn't leave the house. I felt bad about that though, so I just had him turn it off." He said, walking over to stand beside Nines. "You have a horrendous taste in food, and you owned an android hamster?" Gavin laughed softly. "Back then it wasn't an android. Even now if you do your little- analysis mumbo jumbo- you'll see it's really only programmed to run around, sleep, and curl up. He wasn't as experienced as he is now." Nines processed that, before tilting his head. "Your name is Gavin Reed."  
  
"No shit, and did you know I'm a guy too?"  
  
"Your brother's name was Elijah Reed."  
  
"It was. He changed it to mom's maiden name when the family split up." He shrugged saying this, and Nines studied him closely. It might have bothered him at one point, but he seemed pretty at peace with it now. Choosing not to comment on any of this and stir up bad memories, he messed with the other's shirt. "You should shower Detective. You have work in the morning and it's been a long walk." Gavin swat at his hand, causing Nines to smile with amusement. "Yeah yeah, after I get through my workout. I wasn't joking about that!" He walked off to another room, and without any direction where to go, Nines decided to follow him. The spare bedroom was turned into a work room, in both the workout sense and actual detective work sense. One wall was covered with newspaper clippings and holographic articles of Reed's best solved cases. A desk sat in front of it, with a couple papers strewn about and some manila folders in a neat pile. Comparing it to his work desk almost got an exact match. Say what you want about his attitude, Reed, in Nines opinion, has one of the best work ethic that Nines has seen in anyone. On the opposite wall sat some workout machines, and scanning them showed they were all for working on his core and legs. The one, where you lay back on it and use your legs to push a weighted plate, was where Gavin was currently at. "I'll do a couple sets, some crunches, then I'll shower and sleep. You're welcome to power down or whatever on the couch or wherever, just don't wait up for me." RK900 nodded, leaning against the wall.  
  
He didn't need to shut down immediately after all.


	2. It's A Hard Knob Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gavin sets goals and finishes them, whether that be in his exercises, his work, or his personal life. Right now, he just wants to get through his exercise goals. But a certain android was watching him intently, and losing count of the simplest thing. Nines is having issues staying focused, and maybe a talk with Connor could help set him on the right path.
> 
> Except this path is leading south it seems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go again, and I seriously have never had anyone beta my shit I'm pretty sure. If you see any mistakes tho lemme know, both this chapter and the last one were written from like 3AM and forward. Also, I hope this is only a four chapter fanfic, because it's now 8am.

Gavin looked at him then shrugged. "Whatever." He shed the shirt he was wearing, and Nines hoped he kept his face impassive. This was the first time he seen anyone that was actually alive shirtless, let alone Gavin. He could feel processors heat up, and cursed whatever bastard made it so all androids had at least the basics when it came to down there. Still, he could've cancelled the process, turned off that whole area... But he left it, more concerned with figuring out _why_ it was starting up. Gavin- well he wasn't ripped, he wasn't even as defined as they made himself. He was soft, with enough definition in his chest and stomach to pack a punch, but enough softness to grab. "You know, if you're going to stare so intently at my chest every time I'm shirtless people are going to get ideas." Gavin called him out, Nines eyes flicking up to see him smirking, before the other laid back. _Oh._ He should've of focused down below the whole time, cause Gavin was either a complete idiot- or overconfident. He kept his jeans on, and despite Nines running a quick check to make sure that wouldn't be dangerous, he didn't get anyone saying it would cause harm. Just be uncomfortable. But it was _fun_ to watch, as Gavin's thighs shook every time they were forced inwards before stretching again.  
  
Really, he knew he should've excused himself, but he was content to count how many times this man flexed his legs. He hadn't realized his head relaxed, tilting ever so slightly. He also didn't catch the smirk Gavin wore as he caught him staring. A few minutes into it, Gavin called out to him, effectively making Nines' LED flash red as he was startled, then settle on yellow once he was caught. "How many reps was that?" It took him a second to search for the correct term, but then he processed everything. "You're 3 more from 4 reps. Two more. One- There. You've done four reps." Gavin sighed, a very nice sound right now, and set the machine before getting up, using his discarded shirt to wipe his face. Somehow, Nines missed the sheen of sweat the other actually worked up. "Good, now I'll do 50 crunches and call it a night." He mumbled, messing with his shirt before that smirk came back. "Hey Nines, could you watch?"  
  
"Haven't I been?"  
  
"Not in that way, but yeah I noticed. Good to know I'm still enough to get someone's eyes on me, even if it's a ken doll like you." He grinned, before sitting on a mat. Nines wanted so much to show the other he was _not_ a ken doll, but resorted in grinding his teeth and moving over to him. "What do you want me to do then?" Gavin patted the mat, and Nines went to sit beside him before Gavin held out a hand. "No no, sit at my feet." He must have seen his LED flicker red, anger about to protest, before Gavin's own frustrated groan shut him up. "Dickwad, not like that. You need to hold my feet down and count out to me. That way I can't cheat any, and I do the crunches correctly. Otherwise I just wiggle here, and while that might be amusing for you to watch, I want to get to bed." He groaned, and Nines' LED settled on yellow, rotating slowly. "Oh. Sorry for assuming, sure. I'll spot you." He knelt at the man's feet, holding him down like asked. This really didn't help the building heat of his internal processes, noticing how it resonated from low in his gut and radiated out. Again, whoever built this function into a _detective_ android was a dick. As Gavin began, he focused his attention on the man. He didn't realize how... Photographic this view was going to be. Gavin placed his hands behind his head, hair in fifty directions at this point, and each time he curled up, Nines could see the way his eyes were squeezed shut. His skin received temperature alerts with each breath, and Nines was kind of stuck admiring.  
  
This might have led to where they landed a couple minutes later, Gavin panting and groaning. "Nines, really? Really? Phucking hell you're being five kinds of a ditz today."  
  
"Detective, I've already apologized repeatedly for allowing you to go 14 over your goal. I didn't realize it would account for this much of a drain." Gavin barely swatted at him, and his LED spun a faster yellow. He noticed stress rise slightly within his own system. "Ugh, I feel like shit. It's- it's whatever detective dipshit. Could you just help me off so I can shower and get to sleep? I still got to wake up in the morning you know- and I got to cook." He groaned again, and despite the insult, Nines helped him up, basically pulling the other to lean on him. He was warm- heat sensors lighting up through his clothing. Looking at the other hanging to him, his pre-construction technology went off without him initializing it, showing him possibilities of what would happen if he just picked the other up and pinned him to a wall. He quickly shut down the program, Gavin's next groan getting him to move. He helped him into the bathroom, and was about to back out when Gavin placed his back against his own. "Mmph, I hate to ask you this cause then I owe you a fucking favor, but if your plastic ass wakes up before mine, you mind getting out something and cooking it? I'm feeling a lot more sore than expected." Gavin was so... Relaxed with him. It was such a nice change, he wanted this more. "Of course Gavin."  
  
"Don't say it like that." Gavin went stiff, and Nines recognized the next emotion he felt as worry. What did he mean? "I'm sorry?" It was more a question than anything else, and as he turned, he regretted doing so. If pinning the other down and watching him fold up wasn't a great picture, than this definitely was. Gavin, in only boxer's, stretching upwards and then looking to him. His LED blinked blue, capturing the image to memory. "I said don't say it like that. Sounds too much like your some bitchass house android doing my work. If you don't want to don't fucking do it, if you do, at least give me shit for how whatever you make-"  
  
"Will be infinitely better than the garbage I just seen you eat a bit ago. I didn't mean to make it come off that way, I'm just glad you're finally asking like a decent man. And not ordering me around like an obnoxious brat." Gavin stuck his tongue out, moving for the shower. "Mhm, fuck you too Nines. If you've already powered down for the night when I'm done, have a good nap or whatever. See you in the morning." He waved, and Nines took that as an indicator to leave. Sitting on the couch, he idly turned the news on before deciding to power down was a good idea. He had a feeling he'd need to, when tomorrow Gavin would actually have a good night's sleep in him.  
  
RK900 woke up at around six in the morning, a few minutes shy of the hour. He ran thorough diagnostics, cleanup, storage- everything. Relatively, he felt as light as a feather, and bright awake. Given that, he looked around, wanting to find Gavin's room and check what time he would awake. It wasn't hard, the layout of the building said the apartments were each two or one bedroom things, with a bathroom and a combined kitchen and living room. Running a scan over Gavin's files, he wondered why the over lived here. Despite whatever he drank, he should make plenty being under Anderson to afford a better place. At least he attempted to make this place look nice, but the thought made him sigh, despite not needing to breathe. He couldn't help but think how many people walked through the door, only to land on the couch or the bed. He pushed away the thought, instead opening the door to Gavin's bedroom.  
  
Gavin didn't cease to surprise him, even when he was asleep apparently. TV on, the news running on it too, it lit the room up. He expected some kind of- of Eden club back room. Or a trash heap. Instead he found Gavin in a large, queen his HUD helpfully added, bed, laying in greys and dark reds. It was kept cool in here with an AC unit in the window. His tv was mounted, and he noticed his drawer had a cover on it. He also had an entire cat _castle_ , with food and water propped at the bottom, and toys scattered about. On the top, ontop of a cat heat pad, was a smokey gray fluff ball that stared straight at Nines. It was adorable, and scanning the collar, he almost laughed at the name. _Bastard._ It was so Gavin that it made his thirium pump stutter a moment. The cat stretched and laid back down, content with sleeping. He flicked back to Gavin, noticing now the bedstand with his phone charging on it. There was also a medal there, and Nines smiled at it. Quickly, he scanned the other's phone, finding it was set to go off in an hour.  
  
As quietly as he entered he tugged the door to almost shut, in case the cat needed to use the litter box. Which he had yet to see, it must have been in the bathroom but he didn't notice it. He scanned his memory, and caught it now, under the bathroom sink. It didn't need changed so he left the memory recede before he could linger on the image of a near naked Gavin so close to him. He was reminded too much of the way his body heated up, knowing he ran specific diagnostics as to why that happened. That was something else he wanted to do, see if he could call Connor awake. But first, food for Gavin. He opened the fridge, rolling up his sleeves, then just getting rid of the jacket. He hung it on a chair, and got to work. Pulling out eggs, he found a couple of vegetables in the freezer. Leaving them out to thaw, he decided he shouldn't waste time. He quickly messaged Connor, having to actually focus to call the android from such a distance. Thankfully, he got through.  
  
" _Nines? Do you realize the time?_ "  
  
"Sorry, are you busy?"  
  
" _Not really, just surprised. Hank will be getting up soon, so I'm making him breakfast. It's our day off, so I'm going to meet up with Markus. Is something up?_ " Hearing the other's plans made Nines smile a bit, knowing that Connor enjoyed spending time with the deviant leader. If Connor wasn't with Hank, then he was with Markus. Nines easily replied, sighing out loud, hoping it carried in the message. "I'm... Experiencing some interesting phenomena as of late, and was curious if you had any data on it? You seem, when spending time in a certain individual's presence, human, I find my entire body heating from the groin up and certain processes start trying to activate and-" Connor cut him off, _laughing_ over their link. " _So you're getting turned on._ " Nines rolled his eyes. "I'm already on Connor, would you ple-"  
  
" _No no no, you're getting 'turned on'. It means that whoever you've been around, you like them so much that your body is reacting to them without your permission. Which yeah, it's kind of terrifying at first. I see why you called. But I assure you, it's because you either find this human visually appealing, or you're getting close enough to them to form a bond. You know, fall for them... So who is it?_ " If Connor could have, he would've sing-songed that last question. Nines was avidly ignoring it, putting pieces together. "So you're saying that I want to fuck this person? I thought these parts were just installed to help us with cases!"  
  
" _So blunt! No wonder you and Reed work together so often. Noticed neither of you got much work done separated... Don't start huffing over the link. But yeah, at first we were giving these parts to help us with cases, especially undercover ones and ones that would require a more hands on approach. Also because Kamski doesn't believe androids shouldn't have those parts. If we never woke up, we'd never fall in love or become aroused. But because we have, we have the ability to decide for ourselves, 'Hey, Markus is really hot and I want to ride him into the sunset'._ "  
  
"CONNOR. That is _NOT_ what I needed to hear. Thank you for your input!" He heard a laugh as he cut the line abruptly, noticing it was about time to cook breakfast anyways. He started on the omelet, wishing he had fresh vegetables instead of frozen. But, anything would be better than McRoy's. By the time he was almost done, Bastard walked out, mewling at him as it brushed against his pants. Not shortly after could he hear the alarm go off, and a soft grunt. Even that had his thirium pump beating a little faster. He kept thinking over Connor's words, amusing the idea of Gavin pressed close like the other day. He could grab those tanned sides, feel him quiver under his hand-  
  
Oh. Why did his mind have to actually bring up the image of Gavin lying on his back to him. It was enough to distract him so that the actual thing could stroll into the kitchen. "Whatever the fuck you are making, sign me up. Fucking smells like a Denny's but without the sick college kids." Nines chuckled at that, sliding the omelet onto a plate and finding silverware before setting it in front of Gavin. He then set out to make a cup of coffee for the other, using the single serve. "Holy shit Nines this is huge! You made this from my fridge?" Nines nodding, watching the coffee machine. "You really need to go shopping Detective Dipshit." He said, shooting the friendly jab from last night back at him, testing the waters. Gavin only laughed. "Yeah, I never bother since I'm at the office so late. Maybe you should go with me the next time I have off, seems like you know what you're doing better than I do."  
  
"A compliment this early Reed? You must be sick."  
  
"Yeah yeah don't push your luck iron giant. I'm in a good mood, let's keep it that way." Finally the coffee finished, and he did two scoops of sugar and stirred, bringing it over to the other. Only then did he notice what the man was wearing. He decided to actually dress up somewhat. He still looked like he was an actor for the Great Gatsby, but it matched today, and the rolled up sleeves looked really good on the curve of Gavin's arms. "You know, when your LED spins that fast and yellow, you look like there's a warning sign stuck to the side of your skull." Gavin reached up with one of those arms he was staring at and gently brushed his fingers over the LED. Despite knowing there was not any sensors there that should've registered the brush, he still felt in, leaning into the man's hand as the LED flipped between blue and yellow rapidly. "Nines? What the fuck?" Nines, realizing what he was doing, quickly moved away, LED flashing red, almost so light it could've been mistaken for pink. Of course, that wasn't possible, LEDs could only go red, yellow, and blue. "Sorry Detective Reed! I hadn't realized I was doing so. I will check my systems for any-"  
  
"Phucking idiot."  
  
"Excuse me, what?" Oh that came out with a little sass, but it was a defensive sass. Reed had that damn smirk again, like he knew something the android didn't and the probability of that was extremely low thank you! "I said, you're a fucking idiot. But it's fine, you've put up with my dumbass being a dick to you- yet you still hang around." Nines didn't even realize the other was done eating when he got up, taking a sip of coffee and eyeing him. Something about the way those grey eyes locked onto his. Fearless, demanding- Nines used to detest how this human challenged him. Now he found it the highlight of his day to piss the other off, get such human reactions. They fell a state of constant mockery, something that simmered down into a mutual tease as they started to challenge Hank for position even. Months may have passed since the revolution, since RK900 joined his predecessor model as another detective android. Months may have passed between them, but something over the distance they were forced to have apart changed. Or maybe it was always changing, maybe he failed to notice him changing. Interestingly, he couldn't remember the last time Connor actually complained about the other. Yes, Gavin changed, but with him it was always...  
  
"Hey, earth to dreamy boy Ken! You coming?" Wait, did he move?! Nines whipped around, noticing Gavin pulling his jacket on and his badge, everything else hanging off his belt. Nines nodded, quickly grabbing his coat. He didn't miss the smirk this time, and when he pulled his coat on now, there was something knowing in Gavin's eyes. "Come on, don't have time for you to be spazzing like this all day." He was teasing him, the bastard.  
  


Getting to the precinct was not horrible. Gavin would turn the music on, comment on how he missed his music. Nines would remind him it was never 'his' music to get a frustrated groan of 'you know what I meant you plastic prick'. Then Nines would connect with the car, and take a random stab at what song Gavin would like, only to have the detective swat at him. "Don't ever play that overtuned chipmunk in my presence again. He's shit and so were his fans."  
  
"Such compassion detective."  
  
"Beibers deserve no compassion... Play something like- like 'I'm So Sorry', by Imagine Dragons." He said, seeming eager. And who was Nines to deny him, easily switching to the song. It was certainly interesting, and he raised his eyebrows at the lyrics. "It fits you."  
  
"Fuck yeah it does! I loved this song as a kid. Still do. You know Nines, if captain tries to split us up again, let's fucking make him miserable about it." At that, Nines LED went haywire, spinning red then yellow repeatedly. He couldn't piece where that came from, and it must've shown on his face cause Gavin let out a laugh again. In the end, hearing him laugh was worth it. "We work well together, now. It's nice to have someone who's okay with getting decked in the face if it means I don't rush in headfirst to something. Nice to have someone who isn't a fucking wuss watching my back." Nines smiled, then grinned. "Well, I guess it is nice to watch you get punched in the gut for not listening. And I do like seeing you take off." There was a brief silence, Gavin smirking and letting it settle. He should've been prepared. "You could just say you like watching my ass like a normal guy." Nines sputtered, a way too human interaction that he glared at Gavin for causing. His LED stayed on yellow though, just surprised the other figured it out. Then he realized he probably didn't, that this was just his inappropriate way of interacting with actual friends. "I would if it was worth watching."  
  
"Bitch my ass is fan-fucking-tastic. CyberLife gave you ass like a woodplank."  
  
"So you've been looking?"  
  
"Pitying." Oh that little shit, and he so tempted to _do_ something about this conversation when the other looked over, all challenge and amusement in his being. His body heat was rising too, and he pulled at the collar of his shirt. From this angle above him, Nines was reminded, in a way that was painfully jarring, of how that very skin shined with skin and moved with heavy breathing. "Don't worry, I got enough to make up for your lack of." Nines rolled his eyes, feeling heat build in his now. This was readying to be a long day. More music played, though neither of them were really listening to it. Then Nines got an idea, smirking as he switched the next song in line. If this planned out right, this would play and then they'd be walking into the precinct.  
  
It was priceless, Gavin choking on air or something as the words ' _who's your daddy?_ ' blared through the speakers. "What the fuck Nines! Turn- turn this off!" Nines laughed this time, and couldn't help but notice as Gavin stopped swatting at him while he did. "It was in the suggestions! Forgive me Detective Reed, I just set it to autoplay." His tone was purposefully playful, Gavin saying 'bullshit' to his face. The song switched, and Gavin was actually turning red. "Dammit, this is no better tin can!" Nines laughed as the lyrics made the bass in the car beat loud enough to be heard outside the car. ' _I kissed a boy, just to start shit! Homeboy was not about it!_ ' "Oh Reed, I don't see the problem with this song!" He rested his head on his palm, grinning as his LED spun a lazy blue, slightly glowing to the beat. At this, Gavin just turned the music off on the car itself, crossing his arms as the car parked and the doors opened. It was amusing that he didn't whack his head while pouting.  
  
Today seemed like it was going to be a fun day.


	3. Chen-ges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nines finally figures things out, and Gavin removes his jackass hardware long enough that they actually talk. And work. And Nines is pretty sure he would've killed someone today. But at least things seem to be looking a lot better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO I DIDN'T MEAN FOR THIS TO BE THIS LONG. I kinda forgot about it, remembered it, changed it I think 6 times, and then finally pushed through it. By the time I realized this chapter was the size of the first two chapters combined, I couldn't find a place to stop that wasn't a dick move or far too short. SO yeah, shit gets heavy and then it doesn't. Gavin *has* a reason to be a dick, but that doesn't excuse that he was. Nines is forgiving at least, especially if it means his favorite person to piss off doesn't mind him doing so.
> 
> Notice this does have a 4th chapter planned. The 4th chapter is going to be optional don't worry, or at least part of it. It's the chapter that's going to kick the rating up h a h.

Now composed, any hint of messing around gone from their selves, not many people greeted the duo as they walked to their joint desks. Gavin sat down at his terminal, and Nines went over to get another coffee. Except he was stopped, Gavin calling for him. "Hm?" He greeted, LED staying a calm blue. Everything else was them, alone. Now they were at work, and he wasn't going to distract Gavin. "Whatcha doing gogo bot?" Except, this was Reed, and nothing if not reliable. "Getting you a coffee so you're more bearable." Gavin smirked, pointing a finger at the seat across from him. "Fuck ya are. Sit, see what cases we got. Let one of the interns handle that, they need to get paid for something." He reasoned, flagging one down as he spoke. Part of Nines was annoyed by this, that was his job to get the coffee and see Gavin melt a little in the morning. But the majority of him was pretty damn happy. Gavin not only wanted him to work alongside him immediately, but saw him as an actual partner.

Something had definitely changed in the last month. Part of him wondered who was responsible...

A lot of him wondered who was responsible. He made a side goal to look over all the closed cases Reed had dealt with the last month, see who or what caused this changed. "Alright Detective." He simply said, moving to sit down. They had a couple cases, ones Hank and Connor were probably going to be assigned if they were here. "We have another gang related homicide on Mulberry street down on the south side. Then we have a couple of red ice deaths in one of the new Peach Tree clubs." He watched, seeing no reaction from Gavin other than a sip. "We also have notes forwarded us from this homicide case a few days ago, of a rumored dealer making drops on the corner of Francis and East Gilbert street." Gavin hummed, before thumbing through the files. "Nothing new on the Heart Strike deaths from last week?" He asked, and Nines tapped through his side. Their fingers overlapped on each side of the screen, working in perfect sync to pull the file up. "Doesn't look like it..." Nines trailed off, never seeing this case. It was all androids, some Traci models and then various other models wearing familiar outfits. Eden? Nines pulled up a search, making sure that Eden closed last month. "How did I not learn of this case?" He asked, looking past the screen to Gavin.

He was shocked to find Gavin look so serious, anger in those eyes turning them into a storm. He looked at the photo that Gavin was focused on, and realized why. It looked like Nines, but obviously wasn't. The model was different, thinner, smaller, but the hair was styled to seem like his, and the eyes were matching his own ice grays- something many androids avoided due to the ‘cold’ nature they gave off. He wore a black turtle neck- similar to the one he wore on 'plain clothes' missions- with a large hole in the back, where you could see the spine ripped out. Even the pants matched his daily, non-work attire, a storm grey work pants. Nines felt  _ fear _ seeing this, and he tried to brush it off as a coincidence. At the base of his neck was a heart burnt into him and then a knife slash over it, severing the coords from the head to the rest of the body. But no, what stood out the most to Nines was the paper in the android's hand. It had Gavin's number on it. "I had this case when I tagged along with Hank and Connor. They needed a fresh set of eyes, and apparently someone there was someone Connor knew. This guy here,"  _ Guy _ , Nines noted, scanning Reed out of habit and seeing his stress steadily rise. "Approached me, said he might be able to help us with the case, but that he needed a place to stay. I offered them mine, but they insisted they completed their shift. He was some kind of cleaning model before the revolution, that found out he really liked working at this refurbished Eden club named the ' _ Heart Shackle Hotel _ '. Armed with that knowledge I gave him my number so when he was done I could come get him, you know, until he found another club. I... Felt bad. Here was a guy, that just wanted to make others feel better, and he was watching friends get killed. And, since I'm sure you noticed, he  _ was _ wearing an Eden outfit when we talked. He also had lightning blue hair."

Nines leaned back. So it wasn't an accident, whoever killed the android also dressed him up and made him shift his hair color. "When did he die?" Nines asked, and Gavin flipped over the file. "Day after- we found his body while letting Connor have another look. There's- another picture you should see." Reed pulled up the file behind the body, and it was the wall of the building. Connor photographed it, so the blue blood residue stood out like it was under a black light. ' _ Familiar? _ ' Nines felt anger well up in him. "I guess I should've expected this. Recently, with you off on other cases, I was just tagging along with Hank and Connor. Both of them are actual ass at talking to people. Connor tries, but he still can come off a bit intimidating without realizing it. Hank just doesn't have the energy, so I was helping by being the mouth of them. If I absolutely couldn't get an android to talk, I'd call Connor over. But most times," Gavin rubbed the back of his neck, seemingly frustrated. "The guys just wanted to talk. They weren't used to humans going out of their way to help still, especially one like me who had a loud mouth against all this. So I let them. Of course, I couldn't help the few jabs, but most took it in stride."

Nines, never noticed. Did he really lose sight of Reed that he changed that much? Something... Hurt at the thought. "Word got out I guess, and well... I talked to Hank and Connor often about- my past behavior." Nines looked up to see Gavin's eyes reach to his. "And they advised me well enough. Connor more than Hank. And erm, Markus. Reminder, if you see Markus outside when Connor is working, don't invite him in. I made that mistake." Gavin laughed a bit at that, breaking the contact and looking to the screen again. "Well, obviously with the Heart Strike case, Hank and Connor dropped it. Connor was getting dangerously stressed, and Hank was getting pissed. I stayed on, I was hoping that bust last night would lead to more clues. I'm so close I'm just- I'm missing something. I think that's why Fowler made you come with, I haven't been getting much sleep since you d- HE died." Nines caught the slip up, and Gavin knew it. His face went red, and without scanning him, the android knew he was reading hotter than moments ago. "He was dressed up to look like me, possibly because it was public knowledge that we were partners for months."

"Yeah, but why would he go that far when you haven’t shown up to his case?"

"Maybe it's because of who you used to be. And the man is blaming me for the change?" A silence fell, and that seemed actually reasonable. Gavin's eyes turned down, and he began tapping his fingers. Nines smiled, knowing he was working out a plan. "I have an idea- you're going to hate it."

"I always do. Where to first?" Gavin smiled, but noticeably it wouldn't meet his eyes. Nines LED flickered yellow at that. "Storage room. I need access to some clothes for this. We also, er, I also, you should probably run through this file completely. But I need to see Fowler, make sure he approves." Gavin was acting strange, standing up and noticing that Nines was watching him. To be playful, Gavin stuck out his tongue, walking over to lean on the edge of the others desk. Nines knew, one slight movement, and Gavin would be in his lap. His body started to heat up again. "You always got my back with these dumb ideas, right iron giant?"

"Can you come up with a new nickname? That one's starting to become endearing." Gavin hummed in thought, dangerously stretching. ' _ Chance of slipping: 53% _ ' "Ok Wall-E." And just like that, he got up and walked off to the captain's room. Nines didn't hide the way his eyes focused on his ass. Ok, so he did have a really nice ass. His mind was slowly melting into thoughts of pulling Gavin tight, right here in the middle of the room, making him forget about this whole damn case. "Damn." He cursed, before turning to the monitor. It barely took him three minutes to absorb all the information, and he went through others now too. And he was noticing a change. All the cases he worked under Hank and Connor noted 'his attitude with androids is getting better' or 'Connor and him were real calm today'.

A particularly interesting file was Hank recording something. It was deemed irrelevant to the case, but kept in a separate folder, which he located was in Hank's computer. Woops. Opening it, he watched Connor drag Gavin off to meet someone. Oh. Dread filled him as he met Markus. He was expecting a fight, especially when he noticed Markus scowl. Something was said, before Gavin extended his hand. He was certain if he was there, he would've lost his shit. Gavin was trying to shake hands with Markus. And they  _ did! _ Still shaking hands, they talked, Gavin realizing Connor was clapping happily at their side. Hank's voice cut through the silence. "Would you look at that! Trash can closet case, or should I say,  _ filing cabinet  _ case interacts with my son and his boyfriend!" Gavin went red, flipping Hank off. "Don't you start making that a thing old man, I can kick your ass." He didn't need to hear to know Connor and Markus both said 'wanna bet?' at the same time, as Gavin nearly fell over from being spooked. The video ended then.  _ 'Filing cabinet case? _ ' Nines was aware of closet case, what it meant, but what did Hank mean by filing cabinet? Thinking out it, the only thing he could deduce were filing cabinets were made of metal, and not suitable for humans to be in.

Eventually Reed came back, motioning to Tina with his phone, prompting the girl to check it. As she did, Nines could see her light up from this side of the room, quickly darting away. Reed walked over, and instead of taking his normal seat, stole a chair and wheeled it to sit beside Nines. "Plan's a go, though Fowler looks like he wants to maul a kid." Nines laughed at that. "Yeah, probably you." Gavin stuck his tongue at him for that, and only did Nines now notice it wasn't purple. Sad. "Harr harr. Even if it's true, fuck you. Anyways, case talk now. I'm going to need you to strip." Nines sputtered, LED flashing red then yellow. "Excuse me?" He asked, watching Reed do so now. "Strip. You'll be wearing my clothes and some kind of ballcap whenever Tina gets back with it." Nines kept an eyebrow raised, but did as told, if only to amuse the other. "Just the jacket." Nines felt a bit relieved at that. Though, he did not feel relieved at what came next. Gavin slid it on, and Nines eyes went wide. Thirium pump going faster, it was adorable how it was slightly loose on Gavin. He didn't get much chance to admire him though, as Tina came over to interrupt. "Alright Gavin, follow me!" Tina looked so excited, and Nines felt more and more wary about this plan. The unassuming black baseball cap was all he was left with.

Turns out, when Gavin left with Tina, he wasn't planning on coming back for a bit. Nines paced, thinking of what the plan could be. He knew he was getting looks, Reed's coat draped off his shoulders and the ball cap loose on his head. He had to admit, he looked odd to himself. He tried putting on the coat proper, feeling it barely fit him. But, it did, and honestly? It was really warm and heavy, and he wondered how the other managed this everyday. It was another two hours before Gavin and Tina came out. Or rather, a slightly off version of himself and Tina. "Tada motherfuckers! I think I did pretty good on turning this trash can into a shiny piece of ass!" Nines felt his LED just settle on red, watching several warnings about internal heat rising pop up. Gavin was slightly darker than him, and he couldn't get rid of the stubble apparently. But a malfunctioning perma-lit LED was attached to the side of his head with clips, the blue making his eyes light up on that side. His hair was styled back like Nines, seemingly needing a lot more gel to tame than his own. He was most definitely wearing heels, Nines able to identify them in the boots, but he was still just short of Nines. Wearing Nines' jacket, with the bio-information patches falsely lit up to be blue, and a pair of black pants- the only thing that was different was the white shirt. 

"Speechless there Nines? Not going to lie, this is probably as awkward for you as it is for me!" Nines almost felt the urge to cough into his hand. However Gavin seemed to be embarrassed enough for both of them. "Erm, I wouldn't say awkward. You look good in my clothes." And he did, this was making him heat up at an alarmingly fast rate. Gavin laughed at that, seemingly shaking whatever nerves were in his voice. “Glad you approve! Cause as of now-” Gavin walked up to him, and stuck something on his neck. Looking down, he wondered if the other could feel the increased rate of his thirium pump. If he did, he didn’t comment. “You are Officer Niles Chen.” Nines picked up the chuckle Tina gave off, and he supposed it was an amusing name, lip quirking up. “Why am I Officer Chen v2 now?”   
  
“Harr harr Nines.”   
  
“You’re Chen because I am a scrapped RK900 model. We’re going to bait this guy out, and then  _ you’re _ going to arrest him. And finally, I can get some damn sleep cause I know that you’re right here and-” Nines knew it wasn’t possible, that his thirium pump wouldn’t just stop because he heard something that took his non-vital breath away. It wouldn’t stop when he swore his auditory processes malfunctioned, despite hearing Tina gasp and quickly run off. “You were… Worried he was going to come after me?” Whatever had made Gavin froze up broke at that moment, and he quickly pushed away, nervously laughing. Nines’ ran a scan, noting how his stress ran 23% and how his core body temperature rose. A visual look and Nines could easily see the red on his face, the way his eyes darted, the way his grin twitched. “Well of fucking course! Told you I can’t trust any of these jackasses to keep up with me, and I’m going to take Fowler’s chair one day right? Gotta stay alive to do that! So ye- hey hey wait, Nines-”   
  
He wasn’t sure what compelled him to take Gavin’s wrist and head straight for the elevator. However, he was sure about needing to stop the elevator after it started to go down. “Gavin, no one’s around. You’ve- you’ve changed.” He needed to check his vocalization processes apparently, finding himself stumbling over his own words. A lot of things needed checked, but he knew he could power down right now into sleep mode and not a single error code would pop up. “People do that. You’ve changed too Nines.” He could see his LED shift to yellow, rotating calmly at that. “I have?” Gavin nodded, and it seemed that while his temperature remained elevated, his stress started dropping. “Everything’s changed. Androids aren’t just- unfeeling bastards who show up and kick you from your desk. They aren’t just your brother’s latest invention that, like him, is better than you in every way. They aren’t just- they aren’t just guys who lie to you for months and then tell you the truth in the form of being outed by their owner in front of your whooole family.”    
  
Nines was quiet, and he realized with some form of amusement- months ago he wouldn’t have had any idea of what to do about this. He wouldn’t have been able to put the pieces together without going through files on the other. But now he could understand. “More so- that we aren’t  _ all _ like that.” Gavin let out a short bark of a laugh. “You’re right. For so long, I just let- everything pile up into a dumb hatred, and like, I know I’m a general ass but what I did to Connor and you at the beginning- it was a fuckin’ bitch move. I was a bitch. But I want to make that right, and I’ve been trying. And it seems the minute I try to fix shit, something like,” and he waved his hand between them. “This- happens. And it’s bullshit! Fuck it- I care for ya Nines. You’re a-” A pause, and if Gavin’s fake LED was a real one, he would’ve bet it was yellow right now. “You’re a good partner, you put up with my shit, and I can’t actually beat you in a fight and that’s fun- cause you at least let me try. So yeah- I was worried when some jackshit nobody dresses up some poor guy minding his own business to look like you- because you’re my partner and I switched sides!”   
  
“For me.”   
  
“Yeah for you- Wait- wait I mean, not you  _ specifically _ , but you were definitely part of it! I mean, fuck, you  _ are _ my partner, and-” Nines held up a hand, his LED comfortably on blue. Then he took a hold of his shirt, and pulled him in, his other arm wrapping around him. “You’re a terrible liar, Gavin.” He was surprised to feel the man go limp instead of tense, feeling his hand reach out to the side of them. The elevator started moving again. “And you’ve got a great eye for it. But we got a mission and I don’t need an internal clock to tell me we’ve been in here long enough to give Tina ideas.” Nines laughed, before pulling away, straightening out the other’s outfit. He noticed now he had even put his contacts in to make them seem like an ice grey rather than the steel and storm he was used to. “This is dangerous- why’d you go with a scrapped RK900 model idea? I’m very proud of being the only RK900 model ever made, and the killer might know this.”   
  
“Lots of models reuse parts and designs, but better. From what Connor’s explained to me,” Nines disliked the idea of him and Connor being so close and comfortable that they could talk tech without him, “All the RK’s since the officer models have been using the overabundance of spare parts for those models that they can find. It wouldn’t be so far a fetch, even though Connor ran a scan of his upload to Cyberlife’s last- whatever that word was- that you actually have no spare parts other than the basics, so you’ll have to be custom-repaired. Anyways, off topic- he, the killer, wouldn’t  _ know _ if you had spare parts that were discarded or not. So he wouldn’t know that it’s not possible for a ‘scrapped’ RK900 model to exist.”   
  
There was a beat of silence, before Nines ever so smartly replied. “Did you think of this one yourself?” Gavin laughed, this one was actually joyous again and Nines found he really, really liked it. “Hah, no! Hank actually has pretended to be a fake offline model before, for some kind of kidnapping case. So a lot of the idea came from him and Connor. I thought of the RK900 bit though when we were talking again.” Silence, but even Nines could tell this one was comfortable. The doors opened, and Nines walked out first. “Well come on,  _ tin can _ , we don’t have all day,” Nines smiled, eyes playful. He put the cap back on, and turned ahead. He had to resist laughing as he could hear Gavin groan. “You’re going to enjoy this aren’t you?”   
  
“Every minute of it, you reclaimed disaster.”   
  
They went to minor disturbance near where the last killings were, letting Hank and Connor know in case things went south. At least Hank only responded with a ‘Be careful you two.’ A nice little text. Connor sent a full voicemail, Nines playing it back for them. “This is such a stupid idea!” “Connor please, they got each other’s back don’t worry!” “I will worry! Nines, seriously, talk him out of this! Call me back immediately!” “Connor your ‘commanding’ voice doesn’t work on people. “Markus!”  _ Click! _

“Well. I think we may have their approval.” Gavin laughed again, leaning against the other. “Ohhh yeah, totally. They  _ love _ this idea.” He joked back, but then noticed they were stopping. “Remember, we need to stay in character for this. Name?” Gavin said, looking up to him. “Niles…” Gavin nodded, then pointed to himself. “Name.” That time it was slightly more firm, as if he was worried  _ the android _ made for this line of work would fuck something as simple as undercover up. “RK900, the scrapped model.” Gavin nodded, then took a deep breath. Nines could see him trying to make himself look less human. It irked him, not because it was mocking or anything. Gavin was so- alive. In everything. Hand movements, body language, loud- he had a presence that screamed notice me yet in these jackets, Nines felt like the only one looking at him. And that just felt  _ wrong _ . He let it go though, getting out and smacking the top of the car. “Well, you going to sit there and look pretty, or you getting out with me, scrappy?” To be fair, Nines had never thought of insults that weren’t just facts someone didn’t want to hear. Calling someone childish, calling someone a bastard, calling someone an idiot- these could be easily convinced, to at least himself, to be facts. This was out of his element. But it seemed to be ok, because Gavin just barely hid his smirk. ‘ _ Something that a deviant should be able to do naturally’ _ , his mind scolded, knowing he was far too mechanical despite knowing he was a deviant.   
  
At least, he thought so til Gavin copped out a ‘sir yes sir’ in a tone way too flat and serious. At least this would make him human, as he quickly whipped around to glare at the other. “Cut the crap,” he grumbled, rubbing his face as he seen Hank do so many times. It seemed to actually work, his breathing system faking a sigh. “Apparently this is supposed to be a volume complaint, but I don’t hear anything now. Do you?” Oh this was going to be interesting, as Nines turned to look expectantly at Gavin. Gavin didn’t miss a beat, and Nines found himself so much more impressed with his partner. “Sir, my auditory sensors were damaged during the trip over, and are resetting as we speak. I’m afraid I cannot pick up on any long-distance noises at this time, sorry.” There was some attitude in the sorry, but he recognized the sentence. Connor- When Hank decided to  _ blare _ that atrocious noise he called music. He laughed a bit, hand on his hip. “Aw, next time I’ll turn it down, just for you. But fine, the house number that’s causing the complaint is 115.” He said simply, moving towards the house. He already noticed something off, eyes narrowing. A quick scan of the property listed it as abandoned, and despite the obvious signs of blight, he could see light inside the building. Looking to Gavin, he was glad to actually see the detective watching him. “Looks like someone is trying to piss off housing authority.” He joked, and Gavin remained silent, though he was lagging behind. Nines went ahead a few steps, despite knowing his partner stopped.  _ ‘Probably trying to bait the killer into making a move, _ ’ he reasoned, but it still unnerved him to be separated at all. “Well, you coming? Or do I have to say ‘ _ please _ ’ now?” His head tilted back, trying to feign exhaustion. “I think we should split up. Probability for finding the source of the noise increases with us being split up.”   
  
“Eh, you sure?” Verbal ticks- he wondered why they existed. But he realized now you could put a lot of emotion in the way the useless sound was produced. Like his being uncertain and most definitely  _ worried _ . And thankfully it was received, Gavin smiling just slightly, something that someone spying on them wouldn’t notice unless they were right there. “I’m certain, sir. I’ll call out if I spot anything unusual.” Gavin’s voice was confident, and no amount of acting could get rid of that at least. Nines nodded, flapping his hand in the direction. “Yeah yeah, do what you need to do then. And no messing around, if you don’t see something you come back. I’m not explaining to Fowler that I lost one of the only two RK900s to exist on a ‘disturbance’ call.” He said, and Gavin did just that. Nines watched him go before taking a breath- he swore if he was developing a nervous tick because of Gavin’s stupidity he’d strangle the detective. Brushing the thought aside, he walked up to the front, knocking- or more like pounding- the door with a closed fist. “Anyone home?” He called in, and that’s when he heard it. Someone rushing towards the back door.  _ Towards Gavin. _   
  
He pushed the door open, quickly trying to locate them and pausing for only a second at the sight. Android parts- blue blood- a mess of gore that made his thirium pump  _ actually _ stutter. But what was worse were the footprints, leading towards the back. He quickly followed them, but nearly tripped as he heard the  _ deafening _ sound of a silencer. Gavin didn’t use a silencer. He pushed harder, arming his shoulder and breaking the back door off its hinges. He stopped, a second to analyze, to pre-construct. Gavin was on his ass, hand on his gun hidden under the jacket. There was blood on his other arm, fresh, and the shooter was aiming again, raising his arm up. Pushing the program aside, he just  _ acted _ .   
  
“ _ Don’t you dare! _ ” Was his voice that shook? His feet, body- moved on it’s own, tackling the man to the ground. Processes flickered, commands, warnings- all of them at the edge of his vision as he brought his fist and brought it down  _ hard _ on the man’s shoulder. The hand holding the gun went instantly limp, and he vaguely heard the guy’s voice cry out- the killer as he realized with the amount of blue blood on him. He raised his fist again, but then couldn’t pull it down easily. As he looked to the problem causing his arm to lock up, he saw two hands on his arm, straining to hold him back. Then his auditory processes rebooted, ‘ _ Stress 94% _ ’ reading across the top in blaring red. “NINES! Nines stop, stop! You got ‘im, you got ‘im, I’m here, fuck my arm hurts- Ni-”   
  
“Gavin?” He looked up, frozen in place. His stress wasn’t budging, and his LED was peaking out from under the cap, the bright red spinning so fast it could have made someone dizzy if they watched it. “Fuck, shi- Nines yeah, you good buddy?” Was he good? “What a ridiculous question coming from someone with a gunshot wound.” He said, voice strained as he couldn’t identify the emotion in it. “I’m not the one choking out the suspect- stop that!” Nines looked down, noticing the hand that was not trying to punch him, that he thought was on the man’s shoulder- it was now around his neck. He released of course, and searched for handcuffs. “I got them, just- restrain him.” Gavin held out the handcuffs, and quickly Nines took them. While he was handcuffing the guy, none too gentle about manhandling him, he heard Gavin behind him radio in. Unprofessional, but a lot calmer than he expected out of the other. “Hey, Detective Gavin Reed and Nines here- can someone report to 115 Yew Avenue with an ambulance or a med kit? I kind of got shot.” The frantic response was immediate, with someone at least confirming an ambulance was dispatched to their location. Dropping the guy after he was done, he debated, seriously debated, breaking something to encourage him to stay, but the pained grunt he gave out being dropped and the fact he seemed one nudge to passing out left him pretty assured he wouldn’t move.   
  
Turning his attention to Gavin, he noticed the other pressing on his arm, red staining white. “Shit, sorry about this Nines. I don’t know if this is going to wash out- your jacket might be pink from now on.” Nines scoffed, walking over and kneeling in front of him. “Jacket is the least of my worries,” he said, scanning the other. His stress fell a whooping  _ ten _ percent, leaving it at 84, when he seen the wound wasn’t serious at least. “That could’ve went- that-” Thinking of it brought up pre-constructions, and Nines kept closing it for another to pop up. Until he was slapped, blood left on his cheek. “Hey, fuckface, right here, very much alive. Stop looking like you’re one second from internally combusting cause that’s honestly hurting a lot worse than actually being shot.” Nines blinked, wiping his face. “Ow detective.”   
  
“Oh bull, you didn’t even feel that.”   
  
“On the contrary, I felt the intent and I’m wounded.”   
  
“I’m  _ shot. _ ” Nines and Gavin stayed looking at each other for a couple seconds before they both broke out into a laugh, Gavin’s loud and filling the silence and Nines’ soft, letting out steam. “Yeah, you are. I’m going to take this sh-” Gavin smiled wide, more so grinning. “Nuh uh Nines, you finish that sentence. I’m rubbing off on you finally.”   
  
“Not without your dominant hand you won’t be.” A silence settled between them before Gavin broke out into an even louder laughter, laying back on the ground. Between breaths, he choked out some words, but all Nines picked up was ‘Oh no’ and ‘too much’. Something he’d never tell another person, even Connor, was that just hearing the other laugh, seeing him so happy off a poorly timed joke, was reducing his stress so quickly. His LED settled on a slow rotating yellow, that eventually even went to a solid color. He let the other calm down, hearing cars pulling up to the house. One look and he seen the red and blue. So he got up, walking over to the killer and yanking the man up. He noticed now the bruising on him, especially his shoulder that got socked. It was most definitely dislocated, if not broken. He couldn’t find remorse or even guilt in him for that. He lead him through the house, the guy barely conscious enough to fight back. As he approached the front door, two officers, one being Chen, ran up to grab him. “Where’s Gavin?” Nines nodded with his head, and as soon as the guy was put away, she ran back there.   
  
It was a good while ‘til the ambulance got there, in which Tina babied the detective’s arm. Much to Nines’ amusement, Gavin grumbled the whole time, assuring the upset officer that his arm was just fine. Nines stood protectively behind the other, Gavin’s coat now under his arm and the cap placed in their car. His hair was slightly a mess, and while any other moment he would be hurriedly fixing it, right now he was just focused on Gavin’s safety. He knew his presence was probably the reason the others who showed up stayed a good distance away, busying themselves with tasks like roping the house off or tagging the mess of evidence that was the whole place. “Nines- stop glaring at that poor officer and come ‘ere before I have to buy a Nines’ sized magnet.” At tease, he let out an exaggerated sigh. “I’m afraid you won’t be able to find one that can pull me.”   
  
“Mmm, fair enough. I don’t think a truck could move your ass from that spot, so before I try to prove that, come the fuck here.” Nines smiled, rolling his eyes as Tina laughed softly from the detective’s side. He walked up, sitting on metal bed of the ambulance. Gavin’s arm had been wrapped up, and despite Tina’s, and even his own, suggestions to still get checked out, he waved them off. He was certain that he wasn’t going to be allowed to die, saying the words while looking at Nines. It confused Tina, but Nines found it pretty accurate. He was brought back to this moment by Gavin flicking his forehead. “Why do you insist on hitting me.”   
  
“Cause I asked you a question and you didn’t even register that I asked you. Tina- tell magic school bus here that he’s zoning out far too much tonight.”   
  
“As much as I hate to acknowledge how fitting that name is, he’s right. You sure you didn’t get hit with something RK900? That guy hunted androids you know, and from what everyone’s saying- it looks like a bull just crashed through both of the doors in a direct path to this idiot.”   
  
“Hey fuck you, I thought this plan went great!” Nines was not surprised when Tina said the same thing with him, both of them glaring at Gavin. “ _ You got shot! _ ” Tina looked to Nines, then laughed softly. “See! Even Nines thinks you’re an idiot!”   
  
“That’s a given.”   
  
“Now you two are just bullying me. I’m fine, and to prove it, me and Nines will head straight to the precinct and file the paperwork tonight!” Gavin said, standing up as he slid off the ambulance. Nines noticed how his brown coat laid so fittingly over Nines outfit, Nines now in just his turtle and pants. Red trailed down the sleeve, and splattered slightly over the chest. He swallowed, glad neither were paying attention to just how intense his gaze was on Gavin’s chest. “No we aren’t. I’m taking you home where you will rest, and then we can fill out the proper paperwork in the morning.” Tina said nothing as the two entered a staredown, Nines making sure to keep his face passive and cool as the other glared up, challenging him. “Oh yeah- I wanna see you make me go home iron man.” Tina, the wisdom of a saint, moved back, and Nines noticed the phone slip out. If Gavin wanted to go this route however, they would. Without any effort really, Nines picked the other up, holding him under the armpits and lifting him off the ground. Sensibly, he knew Gavin could break this hold. But instead, Gavin just-  _ yelped _ \- and kicked a bit. “Hey what the fuck- no no no- you put me down this isn’t fair! I need a referee- Tina quit recording this!” He yelled, before Nines decided to go a step further. He placed the other over his shoulder, mindful of his bad arm, and turned, walking towards the car. Gavin barely kicked or fuss, and Nines had a feeling it was for show now. “This is absolute shit, let me down dammit!”   
  
“Night Reed!”   
  
Of course he put Gavin down at the car, raising an eye at him. The other huffed, a small smile on his face. “You didn’t have to actually carry me jackass.” Nines walked over to the driver’s side, a smile on his own face as he couldn’t help but think ‘ _ cute _ ’. “I didn’t, no. Wanted to though.” Sliding into his seat, he checked to make sure the other was fine. “Of course you did. You know what, fair, fair…” He mumbled, resting his head against the window. He took off the whole disguise except for Nines’ clothes when the ambulance got there, and now his hair was back to being a barely contained mess, and his eyes, warm, were their dark steel gray. Lighting up when they caught Nines staring. “You did good. See- only guy I can trust to watch my ass.”   
  
“To be fair, it’s a nice ass.” Gavin gasped, moving too fast as he buckled inwards and then groaned. Nines felt bad for that, reaching over and patting his back. “Sorry, that comment was u-”   
  
“That comment was fucking beautiful. Oh fuck- you’re like, Connor’s little brother right? He’s actually going to kick my ass again.” He leaned back, wiping his face of tears and Nines smiled. “Something like that. Don’t worry, he’s equally to blame for- this.” He repeated Gavin’s common hand motion over himself, and Gavin laughed again. Nines noticed it sounded tired despite being genuine. His detective really needed sleep, and thinking to how high his stress was, he probably did too. “I get the feeling that he won’t see it that way.”   
  
“Fair enough. Should I leave you at your house then Gavin? I don’t recommend you proceed with your training regiment tonight at least.” He already started the car, inputting the address with a touch to the GPS. It gave him the chance to look at Gavin once they were moving, who had been looking at him dumbfounded. “What do you mean- ‘leave’? You’re not staying?” Nines paused at that, LED flickering yellow. His auditory processes had to still be malfunctioning, cause the other seemed disappointed with this news. “Unless you want me to, I will probably return to the precinct and power down in a meeting room or something.”   
  
Gavin never answered, remaining silent for the ride until they got to his place again. Then he reached over, grabbing the other’s turtleneck. This time Gavin met his eyes, and that steel grey was melted, something so warm and human in them, and he knew the name of the emotion in the back of his head but it wouldn’t let him remember. Truly, he couldn’t wait to see this self-diagnostic report. “Stay.” Gavin’s voice wasn’t a command, he noted, but Nines obeyed nonetheless, turning the car off. Gavin, seeing this, let go, letting out a quick sigh before hopping out. Nines followed shortly after.   
  
Yes, something had changed. And he was glad for the changes. Whatever had changed, in both him and Gavin, he couldn’t help but be excited to see where this went. Except…”

“Hey Gavin?”   
  
“Hmm?”   
  
"Can we never head back to McRoy's?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks everyone that's read this wild, unbeta'd ride! Plot bunnies sure are fun huh! Like I stated in this chapter's beginning notes, the next chapter is just going to be fluff and fuck, like, that it. I had fun with this though! And seriously, yall's comments were great.
> 
> Could yall believe this started from me thinking 'what if Gavin took Nines on a date to mcdonald's'.


	4. Clubs and Subs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while since they've been a thing, not quite a couple, not just partners. A night at a new club will end up changing that, and Nines learns that sometimes he just needs to feel. 
> 
> If you ask everyone else, it's about fucking time. Literally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The smut chapter that took way too fucking long. Seriously though, thank you all for the comments and the love seriously! This fandom is amazing, I got so excited seeing the sudden inflow of kudos when it was only one chapter in! Yall are great. Of course this is an un-beta'd mess, and if you see any mistakes lemme know! I hope yall enjoy this, and trust me when I say more is coming!

It had been at least a month since the successful capture and arrest of that android killer. Nines had found himself going to Gavin’s every night now. It was best for both of them, especially on days that Gavin ignored the technical ‘end’ of their shift to work on a case. Or days Hank and Connor insisted on celebrating a case, like this one. The five of them, Markus having waited for everyone outside the precinct, went to a new bar that had popped up. It bragged that it had plenty of android friendly drinks and snacks, and no one could deny how curious they were to that. Nines wore a simple black turtleneck and black jeans, not changing from his uniform too much since that day. Of course his jacket was ruined, but Gavin had bought him a new one, black leather, that fit him quite well. He left it in the car for today, the only indicator of him being an android anymore being his LED. He liked it, he liked the way Gavin would stare at it as if trying to figure him out. Like now, even as it sat at a steady blue and there was so much to look at around them.   
  
The place was much larger than any of them expected. The lower floor that was crowded with dancers and the bar was lit up by the floor itself. On each side of the dj stage there was staircases to the second floor- the whole place was an open roof. The second floor seemed like it was calmer, and more… Intimate… Than the bottom floor. The roof had stars shined on it from the wall lights that moved and twinkled. All this to stare at, and Gavin was staring at his LED, drink in hand. Ironically, they both held purple drinks, Nines’ fizzing and popping while Gavin’s laid smoothly, glowing from the bar lights. “Gavin, as much as I appreciate the attention, you are missing out on the point of this outing.”   
  
“The fuck you on, I’m having fun.”   
  
“Staring at my LED?” He got a nod, Nines saw as he took a drink. He had turned off the scanning part of his tongue, allowing himself to just feel. The drink was synthesized, he realized after a couple sips, to just dissolve into his thirium harmlessly, and it tasted like pomegranate, a taste he kept finding himself drawn to. Unlike the canned drink from the vending machine, this one kept the fizzy, bubbly feeling as it went down, and the scent of the fruit was stronger. It was called ‘Pome Bubbly’ on the android menu, but he didn’t really expect this. “And why are you having fun staring at my LED?”   
  
“Cause you look so happy right now.” That mushy sentence coming out of the detective had him heating up, LED spinning yellow once. He actually turned to Gavin now, who looked amazing to him, and was met with a grin. He changed clothes, having some spare in his locker. A tight t-shirt that read ‘This Side Up’ across his chest, tight jeans, his normal sneakers- he ditched the badass detective look for his comfortable clothes. Clothes Nines only seen him wear if they went places like the mall or on a walk. When he didn’t want to be seen as a cop, but just another face in the bar. Nines also noticed that others’ gave his Gavin  _ looks _ , and he found his thirium pump running hot at the idea. “Gavin, you should be out there having fun. Even Hank left for the dancefloor-  _ Hank _ . Gavin-  _ Hank _ .” He couldn’t stress how amusing it was to picture the older man out there, among the sea of people that probably all looked to be 30 or under. “The only way my ass is heading out there is if you’re leading it so. I’m not much for grinding up against some total stranger like a fucking horny teenager.” Gavin knocked back his drink, instead turning and facing the crowd.   
  
“So if I wanted to dance, you would?” Gavin nodded, looking to him. His eyes seemed expectant, and Nines found himself finishing his own drink quickly. “That’s what I said. Can you even dance in a place like this Nines? You know, with that stick up your ass?” Nines had been more careful as of late. Their… Friendship? Relationship? He didn’t know- whatever they were as of late seemed a lot more than just partners. Going home together, Nines cooking for the other, Gavin finding Nines’ favorite tv channel. Gavin eating while laying across the android’s lap. Nines hand on his hair, soft gentle moments that Nines knew wasn’t just a ‘partners’ thing. Then Gavin’s routine as well, spotting for the other while they jokingly talked about the day. Shit talking other officers, even sometimes Connor and Hank now that Nines lost his over-protectiveness of Connor. It all confused Nines, so he fought hard not to do anything to break it, this, them. But tonight, Gavin looked so  _ expectant _ , like he wanted to be proved wrong. And the beat, the general happiness, it was infectious. Nines got up, walking in front of the other and holding out his hands. “Let’s find out.”   
  
Gavin took his hands with a grin, and despite the slight shock of the other immediately moving to press against him, Nines still managed to pull them towards the dance floor. The beat was fast, and as soon as Gavin took the lead, Nines followed. He might have watched a couple videos on this, taking in what info he could on their walk over. But nothing prepared for the  _ feeling _ . Gavin was pressing against him, eyes never leaving his. His hips swung with the beat, and Nines laid his hands on them, matching the other’s swaying- more like bouncing. His thirium pump kept going faster and faster, but his stress didn’t rise. He felt himself go dry in the mouth, gulping hard as his LED settled on blue, but it seemed dimmed. Eventually, Gavin must have been satisfied with that, because he turned, never pulling away enough that Nines hands couldn’t stay on his hips. “Try not to malfunction!” Gavin called out, and Nines wondered why til he started to move again. And it felt like, to Nines, someone just punched him in the gut. His breath left him in a quick rush, and he was glad he didn’t have to actually breathe cause he was pretty sure he just stopped doing so. Gavin  _ grinded _ back into him, and his sensors start going haywire. Processes started, and despite Nines repeatedly hitting ‘no’, they kept popping up. “Gavin.” He warned lowly, and got the other to look at him from over his shoulder. “Just go with it Nines!” Nines couldn’t tell if he was oblivious or expecting of this problem, but either way, Nines found himself pressing back into the other, hands holding on a bit tighter. 

He could feel pleasure, it was something him and Connor had discussed. Connor explained it as everything getting hot, but you like it, and you don’t stress out over it. And then he went on to explain how their bodies tingled from the new feeling, their processors still updating themselves on how to handle the sensation and causing it. And Nines- Nines was experiencing it all at  _ once _ , breath back online and coming out in short puffs as his body tried to cool itself down. With his head leaning on Gavin’s shoulder, he knew his breath ghosted over the man, and caused Gavin to laugh. There was more to this feeling than just heat and tingles, and really, it was fucking  _ amazing _ . When the process popped up again, Nines turned off the alerts, setting it to auto-allow for now. It wasn’t like he had to do anything about it, he could kill the process at any time, but having it flood his vision as he pulled Gavin closer was annoying. It didn’t take long for Gavin to notice either, the other turning his head. “Eager Nines?” And he pulled away.  _ Fear _ flooded Nines, stress rising as he could only assume he pulled away because of the reaction. He almost pulled up the ‘end process’ screen when he was suddenly grabbed by the wrist. Seeing it was Gavin, he let himself be tugged, lead out of the crowd and to a side door. He couldn’t spot anyone they came with, should he let them know they were leaving? Why were they leaving- was Gavin going to yell about all this?   
  
They walked outside, and Nines didn’t hesitate to scan the area. Safe, but there were traces of substances from nights past. “Gavin, I didn’t mean to-” He was silenced by a rough push against the wall, Gavin closing the gap and pressing against him. Looking at the detective, he accidentally scanned him, a thermal indicator showing body heat rising, with its main focus on his face and- oh. Nines let out a breath, all heat pouring out. The other area was pressing against his hip, as Gavin reached for his face. “Nines, you good? Your LED was red and now it’s spazzing on yellow.” There was  _ concern _ in his voice, Nines realized, and his body acted before he truly processed it. Which was terrifying but he supposed it meant he was truly a deviant. He moved to hold Gavin’s sides, gulping as he nodded. “Fine- better than I think. You’re- you’ve caused a certain  _ reaction _ in my processing and I was unsure if that had upset you, so I’m just getting used to finding out it didn’t.” Gavin cursed, eyes closing as he rested his head against Nines’ chest. “Shit, not what I was aiming for. Sorry I didn’t make it more obvious, forgot your head is like, 40% air.”   
  
“Really? How long did you hold onto that one Reed.”   
  
“A while- fuck off it was good. But my point is, unless you have any objections, I would like to deal with  _ both _ of our ‘reactions’ in a fun way. Comments? Concerns?” His voice was full of sass, but he hadn’t stopped smiling, he hadn’t stopped looking up at Nines with his eyes full of  _ want _ and warmth. “Are you sure you want to do this out here?” Nines said, hands sliding down as he felt the process kick up again. He could feel the warmth Gavin radiated through his hands, and just to tease the other, slid his hands under the hem of his shirt. The reaction was worth it, watching the other arch into him as he tried to speak. “We could go home, but you’d end up carrying me. Don’t think I can keep my hands to myself Nines.” He promised, making a point when his hands slipped off Nines’ face, onto his shoulders. One continued while the other stayed, running down his shirt. “Definitely won’t be able to.” He hummed after a second, hips moving just slightly. Nines had to think- this was public. Anyone could walk out, and see his detective rutting against his hip. And that thought pissed him off. So his hands slid back, LED sliding to blue as suddenly he lifted Gavin, holding the other against him with hands under his ass. “Home. And you’ll behave, or this will be the last time your hands see freedom for the night.” He warned, and didn’t miss how Gavin shivered against him. He carried them to their car, setting Gavin in the passenger side and getting in beside him.   
  
Now more than ever was he glad for self-driving cars and the ability to multitask. He set the car address while messaging Hank, figuring he’d be more curious than Connor and Markus. He only got an ‘Alright I’ll let them know’. He might’ve left things out in his initial text, having only told Hank that ‘Me and Reed are leaving, something came up’. But it wasn’t a  _ lie _ . Two things came up, if he was to bet. Leaning back, all that taken care of, he was happy that the car was taking off. Looking to Gavin, he noticed his stormy greys focused on him, and he couldn’t help the chuckle. He was being good, and Nines turned the chair around to face him, tapping his own leg. “Well, are you going to come here?” He was covered in an instant, Gavin sliding into his lap, fingers in his hair. “How long you going to make me wait to kiss you asshat?” He said, and Nines merely smiled in response. He leaned up, his hand on the back of Gavin’s head as he pressed their lips together. He was expecting it to be weird feeling, he wasn’t exactly made to kiss people. But with his analyzer turned off, he tried to deepen the kiss. He was met eagerly, feeling the other’s hips move slightly in response. Gavin took control of the kiss, allowing Nines to just feel. It was warm, and he hummed in response. Gavin pulled away, and instantly started to kiss and suck at the skin on Nines’ neck. Quickly, he turned off his skin’s self healing.   
  
It felt great, to have the other kissing and even nipping. His head tilted to give the other more access while his hand slipped under the waist of his pants. “Gavin,” his voice, he didn’t even know it could make a sound like that, the low tone he normally had dropping an octave and purring, so it rolled. Gavin’s hands were moving now, trailing down his chest and tugging on the shirt. Nines leaned up so that the other could pull the shirt off. It was late enough that none of their neighbors would be paying attention anyways. The turtleneck hit the backseat, and Gavin pulled away. A brief string connected them before it broke, Gavin huffing. Nines watched as Gavin’s eyes went down his chest, becoming darker. “Damn, they really didn’t hold back on trying to make you look intimidating huh?” Was he intimidated? Nines didn’t know much, but didn’t intimidation normally scare people? Yet Gavin seemed excited by this, running his hands along Nines’ arms, before he quickly leaned in for another kiss. Nines wasn’t too worried about being confused when Gavin was trying to kiss the life out of him. The car suddenly stopped, and Nines groaned, annoyed at having to pull away. “Parking Gavin- let me park. Go ahead and head up.” He nudged the other off, getting- getting a  _ whine _ . He couldn’t hide the smirk at that noise, Gavin going red. “Don’t keep me waiting Nines.” He rumbled, stealing one more kiss before getting out. Nines seen him almost run into the door, swinging it open much more aggressively than he needed to. Nines quickly focused on parking, and then he grabbed his shirt from the back seat.   
  
He took his time getting out and walking up. In the corner of his vision, he could see the timer tick up as he walked, knowing just how much time he was making Gavin wait. And it was worth it, as he opened the door to soft gasps. He closed and locked it quickly, turning his HUD to emergency only alerts, and setting most of his processes to allow. He made a note to himself to make a ‘mode’ for this, as his whole body seemed to buzz, so that it was easier to switch into. He could just leave some of the processes on permanently, or when he wasn’t dealing with perpetrators. That option seemed better, and he stopped thinking too much of all that. Instead he walked into the apartment, noticing Gavin on the couch  _ instantly _ . A hand on his length, the other between his teeth. Seemed he liked to bite in general. For a moment Nines just watched, hearing the muffled noises behind the hand. “Having fun without me Gavin?” Nines would forever have the ‘gah’ that the other released when his hand moved etched to memory. “Made me wait- bah-bastard. Fuck… Get over here.” Nines smirked a bit, moving over to the couch. Gavin looked up to him, eyes dark with lust and hooded. There was a lot he wanted to memorize, but he had a feeling that this was going to be a repeat occurrence. Instead, he reached down, easily pulling the other’s hands away and leaning in to silence the whine with a kiss. 

  
He kept Gavin’s hands pinned down, feeling his body jolt as he tried to buck, get any friction. It was a cute attempt, and Nines tugged his arms to wrap around his neck. Breaking the kiss, he nuzzled into the stubble the other had, kissing at his jaw. “Want to move this Gav?” The nickname didn’t go unnoticed, and Gavin let out a purr, standing up and putting himself against the other. Nines dropped his hands from the other’s wrists and instead picked him up. “Gav huh? I like it, ‘s cute. It’d be cuter if you were panting it while hovering above me.” Nines laughed at that, carrying him to their room. Gavin’s hands ran up and down his back, nails leaving little trails as they went. Nines let a shiver overtake him, barely getting the door open before he would have had to press Gavin against it. Instead they made it to the bed, Nines placing him down gently. Lips found his neck again, and Nines was the one to let out a soft sigh this time. Teeth meet skin, hard enough to draw thirium in little droplets. It felt great, and he made sure his healing process was off. As Gavin pulled back, admiring the mess he made of the androids neck, he couldn’t help but whine. “Nines, I’m wearing too many clo-” He cut himself off with a laugh, not needing to finish his sentence as Nines eagerly undressed the other. Pants, then shirt, until Gavin’s clothes were on the floor, at least in a pile. He took care of his own clothes, setting them beside Gavin’s.   
  
“Dammn, they uh, they-” It was cute, so much of Gavin was cute honestly, but it was especially cute to hear him go speechless right now. However, he wanted him to make some noise. Lips attacked his neck, nipping and sucking. He must have took Gavin for surprise, because he gasped then groaned lowly, hips lifting to try and meet his. His lips slid down, kissing over his defined chest and abs. Internally Nines cursed, noticing how much more firm his gut seemed to be. “The exercises are really working well.” He commented, hand running over the area he kissed before grabbing Gavin’s length. Any sputtering Gavin was about to do cut off at that, instead just letting out a gasped ‘ _ fuck! _ ’. He thrust his hips into Nines hand, and he allowed it once, before he held the other’s hips down. “Nines come onnn.” He urged, trying to do so again. Nines didn’t allow it, instead licking at the tip. “How do you want me, De-tec-tive?” The word was emphasized with licks, and Gavin had thrown his head back. “I’m not good with choices dammit- just- Nines I want  _ you _ .”   
  
Nines nodded, then searched the drawer beside their bed for what he needed. Sure, he could wing it, but he knew Gavin would appreciate this done right. Besides, he didn’t want to hurt Gavin with this. Finding it, he pulled the bottle out, and set it beside him, starting to stroke Gavin. For a few minutes, they were both lazy, and Nines watched as Gavin’s face twisted in pleasure. His back started arching, and Nines used his free hand to open the cap. Spreading the soft gel on his fingers, he slipped one in while Gavin was distracted. It got a louder gasp, Gavin rocking back on his finger instantly. Nines chuckled, and slipped in another finger after a few strokes. It was now that he started to actually stretch the other, mouth places kisses to the tip of the detective’s length, licking anytime he felt slightly more resistance. “Nines for the love of- fucking get on with it!” Nines ‘tsked’, shaking his head while adding a third finger, starting to search for a spot. Gavin’s patience was so short, and Nines can feel him pulse in his hand. He knew he found it when the other cried out, loud enough to startle the cat. Bastard ran out the room, but that was background noise honestly. “Protection?” He asked instead, and was a bit surprised as Gavin shook his head. “Don’t need- clean- fuck me  _ please _ Nines!” He wasn’t so much worried about that as he was the feeling of laFinally, he pulled out his fingers, slicking his length up. Carefully, he slid in, hands on the other’s hips as he eased in. Gavin was  _ tight _ , causing Nines to groan softly as the feeling surged through him.    
  
He didn’t waste much time, rocking into the other once he settled. One hand slipped up, feeling his sides, holding him. Gavin’s hands moved as well, gripping his shoulders, one digging into the bitemark, causing thirium to trail down his chest. Eventually nails dug in harder, and Gavin bucked down into him. “Faster- or can you not handle it?” He teased, and Nines grinned, changing his pace. The hand on his hip gripped harder, and the bed started to shift more. Gavin started to moan now, and Nines couldn’t help but to move with a little more force, aiming for the spot to really get Gavin to be vocal. It took a few seconds but he found it, and then sped up, listening to Gavin cry out. “Nines- Nines oh  _ phuck! _ So good,” he kept rambling in that manner, and every time he did the taller man felt arousal spark at the sound of his name. Gradually he gained more speed and force, feeling everything boil and build up, like his wires were starting to overheat. Suddenly he found himself forced close, Gavin kissing him to muffle his near shouts. This kiss was a lot less coordinated than the others, more spit and heated breaths than actual movement. “Gavin- Gavin-” Nines panted, both hands back on his hips and pulling him closer. One smartly thought to move to the other’s length. Apparently, that was what broke Gavin, as he suddenly became a vice grip on Nines, painting both of their chests and nearly  _ screaming _ his name. The sudden squeeze, the image of Gavin arching, coming undone cause of  _ him _ , it was enough to do him in as well. Everything felt like fire in his core, and his hips stuttered as he came apart, Gavin’s name slipping from his lips in a low groan. Rocking until they both came out of their high, Nines eventually pulled out.    
  
He only now noticed the emergency alerts- overheating, system overload, system functions malfunctioning. Eventually he dismissed them, letting his body do what it needed to fix itself. The LED slowly faded in and out on yellow, and his breathing increased a bit. He looked over Gavin’s form, and noticed the hand shaped bruises on his hips, the nail marks on his sides. He sported a couple hickies, nothing as bad as the bitemark he received honestly, but it made him proud nonetheless. He slipped off the bed while Gavin laid there, sleep seemingly about to overtake the detective. Slipping into the bathroom, he got a washcloth, soaking it in cold water as well as a dry towel. He then dipped into the kitchen for a cold cup of water, and brought the items back in. Setting the water down, he wiped down Gavin’s skin. “Mmmf- you didn’t have to do that.” He was a bit shocked to find the other still awake, his deep breathing fooling Nines. Sleepy, satisfied eyes looked up at him, and he couldn’t help but smile back. “I didn’t. I wanted to.” He finished cleaning off Gavin, working on himself next. He still kept the self healing off, so with the towel he dabbed at the mark. It stopped leaking thirium, despite the self healing being off, and Nines wondered if his body finally did something on it’s own for once. Then he used the towel to dry up the other, making sure to get his back as well. He had to place an arm around him to do so, pulling the other close. It got a response, Gavin reaching forward to wrap his arms around the other’s neck once more. “Stay.” He was the last person in control here, Nines knew, but despite that, the order was stuck in his head without him needing to say it.   
  
“As long as you want, Gav.” That response got him a kiss. Compared to all the others, this one might as well have been the first kiss they shared. It was chaste, lips pressed against each other, and pulling away only enough so that they didn’t need to move to start another one. “Then how ‘bout all night, and tomorrow, and we can talk about  _ us _ in the morning.” Nines kissed him again, wrapping his arms around the smaller man as he pulled them to lay down together. “Sounds good,” he said when they broke apart, and then nuzzled into the others neck. It didn’t take long for Gavin to pass out after that, and Nines found himself shutting down as well. He still had the faint taste of pomegranate and Gavin on his tongue.


End file.
